Worry over tuition hikes

Along with cuts to the HOPE Scholarship program and Pell grant, students will be hit with a bigger tuition bill in the fall.The Board of Regents approved an across-the-board three percent
rise in tuition on April 19. These increases came in response to the decision by Georgia lawmakers to slash $227 million from the higher education budget.
According to the Atlanta Jour-nal-Constitution, two-year colleges like GPC will see a $50 increase in tuition, a total of $1,199 a semester. Four-year institutions like Georgia State University and
University of Georgia will see the largest increases.
“HOPE and Pell cover my tuition and I won’t be able to afford it,” said pharmacy major Jannet Peoti. “It just doesn’t make any sense to decrease our financial aid while tuition increases.”
“Nobody’s happy, including the Board of Regents,” said President Dr. Anthony Tricoli. “But it is necessary at this time to maintain the quality of service we provide for students.”
Tricoli believes the hike will not negatively impact GPC, that the college would not be hurt any more or less than schools like UGA. All University System of Georgia institutions will be struggling with this hike, he said.
“What do they want people to do, not go to school?” said premedicine and biology major Glory Ani. “People go to school to improve their education. There’s going to be a ripple effect on society
because of it.”